The first batch of methanol-powered heavy-duty trucks roll off the production line at Shanxi New Energy Automobiles Corp on June 22. [Photo by Shi Xiaobo for China Daily]

Shanxi New Energy Automobiles Corp making history in Jinzhong

Methanol-powered heavy-duty trucks and methanol-electric hybrid passenger cars rolled off the production lines at Shanxi New Energy Automobiles Corp on June 22, marking the world's first mass production of such vehicles.

The manufacturer, based in the city of Jinzhong in Shanxi province, is wholly owned by renowned domestic automaker Geely.

Liu Hanru, chief scientist at Geely New Energy Commercial Vehicle Group, said the latest truck is its second generation of heavy trucks powered by the cleaner fuel of methanol. "Compared with its previous version, which was a model for trial operation, the new truck features stronger performance and lower energy consumption. Thus, it can further help owners substantially save operational costs."

The executive added that the new passenger vehicle is a methanol-electric hybrid sedan, belonging to the fourth generation of the company's methanol passenger cars.

"With a per-kilometer energy cost of 0.3 yuan ($0.045), the sedan is among the most economical in its class industrywide," Liu said. "As one of the most energy-conserving and lowest-emitting cars in its class, it can reduce 0.8 metric tons of carbon dioxide emission per 10,000 km, compared with its counterparts."

The executive said the first batch of methanol trucks were snapped up by clients from the Xinjiang Uygur autonomous region and Gansu province in Northwest China.

Liu said the maturity in methanol vehicle-making technologies and the availability of methanol are the two decisive factors in the sector.

He said Geely began to develop technologies for methanol vehicles in 2005 and have since made breakthroughs in the production of methanol engines and components.

"With our self-developed core technologies, Geely is the world's first volume producer of methanol-fueled vehicles and the first in China to get a license for methanol vehicle production," Liu said.

Geely established Shanxi New Energy Automobiles Corp in the city of Jinzhong in 2011. This facility began producing methanol and pure electric vehicles in 2017.

When talking about the availability of methanol, Liu said China's research and production of methanol as an automotive fuel began in the early 1980s.

"Large-scale trials on the fuel and vehicles, which have been organized by the Ministry of Industry and Information Technology and implemented by a number of automakers over the years, show that methanol-fueled vehicles have great market potential because of their proven reliability, cost-effectiveness and environmental benefits.

"And with a great number of methanol production facilities in place, the ministry is now making efforts to promote methanol vehicles nationwide by incorporating this sector in its green industrial development plan for the 14th Five-Year Plan (2021-25)," Liu said.

The executive noted that there are a number of techniques for the production of methanol. The most popular ones are extraction from biomasses, like crop stalks, and the synthesis of carbon dioxide and hydrogen, which is made through water electrolyzation.

"Shanxi has unique advantages in developing methanol fuel," said Liu Yudong, chairman of Shanxi New Energy Automobiles.

He explained that Shanxi is a coal-rich province and carbon dioxide as a key raw material for methanol production can be captured from the emissions of coal-fired power plants, coking plants and other industrial facilities that consume coal.

"While offering sufficient fuel to vehicles, the methanol production facilities based on carbon dioxide recycling can also play a significant role in emission reduction and carbon neutrality," Liu Yudong said.

Jinzhong, where the company is located, is one of the cities in China piloting the development of methanol fuel and methanol vehicle production.

It now boasts a complete methanol industry chain, ranging from research and development, equipment manufacturing, methanol production and transportation to filling stations.

A leading player in the local methanol production industry is Changsheng Coal Gasification. It recently signed a strategic partnership agreement with Geely by supplying methanol to Geely vehicles in Jinzhong and the rest of Shanxi.

Changsheng's future methanol plant, with a designed annual capacity of 250,000 tons, is scheduled to be operational by June 2023. The company's executives estimate that such output can meet the demand of 5,000 methanol-fueled heavy-duty trucks.

City officials predict that the total annual output of methanol by local producers could reach 1 million tons in 2025－enough to satisfy the demand of 20,000 trucks. They also projected that the methanol fuel and vehicle production industries in Jinzhong could generate 20 billion yuan ($2.98 billion) in output value in the same year.

A complete industrial chain has also taken shape in the methanol vehicle production sector.

"Jinzhong has gathered a great number of component producers and suppliers for methanol vehicles," Liu Yudong said. "Take the Geely facility as an example. We have benefited a lot from local suppliers of components and parts."

The executive explained that deliveries from local suppliers can be completed within a day, while those from the rest of the country would take four days at most.

"We estimated that local component supplies can help us reduce logistics costs by about 62.5 percent," Liu Yudong said. He predicted that more than 25 percent of the components and parts could be supplied by local manufacturers by 2024.

The new energy vehicle production sector is the most important of the eight emerging pillar industries in Jinzhong, according to Chen Yubin, an official at the city's industry and information technology bureau.

The sector is now home to five automakers that include Geely, as well as 60 component producers. Jinzhong New Energy Automobile Industrial Park, the major base for the sector, reported an output value of 15 billion yuan in 2021. Chen predicted the value is expected to surpass 50 billion yuan in 2025.

Guo Yanjie contributed to this story.